Profile: Carpenter is in a situation similar to that of former St. Louis farmhands David Freese and Allen Craig in that he’s a bit old for a prospect (26) and owns a solid minor-league résumé (.300 batting average and .408 OBP) –- but is currently blocked from becoming a potential regular in the majors. Ironically, it’s Freese –- only the 2011 World Series MVP -– who is now in Carpenter’s way. But that’s not necessarily as bad as it seems, either, considering Freese has been one of the more injury-prone players in baseball recently. Carpenter could find himself getting more time than most National League bench players, because Freese has yet to play even 100 games in his two years as the Opening Day third baseman. Plus, Carpenter saw limited action while Freese was out last year, and showed that he has the capable bat and elite eye (15:14 strikeout-to-walk ratio) to get the job done if needed over long stretches. (Jason Catania)

The Quick Opinion: A polished lefty hitter, Carpenter is ready to embark on a career as a valuable real-life reserve, but his fantasy value is limited by the lack of a starting job, not to mention prototypical power for a third baseman. If he breaks camp with the Cards, he might be a bench play in deep NL-onlies -– perhaps as a handcuff for Freese owners.

Profile: Carpenter, 27, was waiver wire gold last season, hitting .294/.365/.453 (125 wRC+) in 340 plate appearances while picking up eligibility at first, third and in the outfield. The Cardinals plan to try him at second base in Spring Training, which would add even more versatility. Carpenter has hit at every level, though he only offers modest power and little stolen base ability. St. Louis has a clear opening at 2B and that could lead to 500+ plate appearances for Carpenter, otherwise he's a high-caliber bench piece and fantasy owners will have to monitor lineups daily if they want to use him. He'll give you batting average and RBI, but playing time is the big question. (Mike Axisa)

The Quick Opinion: Carpenter's biggest drawback is his uncertain position and playing time. The Cardinals plan to try him at second base in Spring Training and if he sticks, he'll have strong fantasy value thanks to his batting average and RBI.

Profile: One of the biggest surprises in fantasy baseball, Carpenter earned the second-most fantasy value among second basemen in 2013. Though he offers middling power and little speed, a major league leading runs-scored total boosted his fantasy earnings. Along with the runs scored, he cut down on his strikeout rate and hit a ton of line drives while avoiding the pop-up, which combined to inflate his batting average on balls in play and lead to a batting average well above .300. Unfortunately, since he relies on such a high runs scored total without the ability to score himself on a plethora of home runs, there is great risk of regression. While he should once again post a strong batting average, he doesn't do enough elsewhere to be any more than a two-category contributor. Therefore, he's likely to be overvalued in many drafts. (Mike Podhorzer)

The Quick Opinion: Carpenter enjoyed a career fantasy year as the Cardinals set a new record in hitting with runners in scoring position, boosting his runs scored total. That type of success is not going to happen again and with limited contributions in power and speed, he is a near lock to be overvalued on draft day.

Profile: There's a non-negligible population of minor-league hitters who exhibit some combination both of plate discipline and the ability to play second or third base. Most of them develop into little more than useful bench players. Carpenter, a former 13th-round pick who signed for merely $1000, owns roughly that same profile. Unlike with some of his peers, however, his walk rates have translated well the majors. Moreover, despite only modest home-run power -- he's averaged just eight homers per 600 plate appearances in his major-league career -- Carpenter has exhibited a strong batted-ball profile, recording a career .338 batting average on balls in play (BABIP). That's on the high end of sustainable marks, but there's reason to believe it's reflective of something like Carpenter's true talent. For one, he's done it over a nearly 2000-plate-appearance sample. For two, his rate of infield flies per batted ball, which correlates inversely to BABIP, is among the league's best over the last three years. (Carson Cistulli)

The Quick Opinion: Carpenter features perhaps the greatest separation between tools and baseball-specific skills in the majors. He lacks any outstanding examples of the former, but a considerable volume of the latter. An All Star-type season is still a likely outcome from his 2015 campaign.

Profile: Carpenter entered 2015 as a high contact patient hitter with minimal power. In nearly 1,800 plate appearances, he had hit just 25 home runs (71 PA per HR). He changed his approach in 2015, bashing 28 home runs in 665 plate appearances (24 PA per HR). The increased power came with a price. His swinging strike rate doubled and his strikeout rate increased seven percentage points over 2014. He retained his high walk rate and the extra home runs helped him to a .272 average. The breakout is easy to see in his batted ball profile. He slashed his ground ball rate substantially in exchange for more fly balls. He even managed to maintain his elite infield fly rate. More fly balls coupled with a career best 16% home run per fly ball ratio did the trick. His average fly ball distance also increased 13 feet year-over-year. Entering his age 30 season, the newly powerful Carpenter is drifting out of his prime. He may not hit another 28 home runs in 2016, but he should pass the 20 homer threshold. (Brad Johnson)

The Quick Opinion: Formerly a contact and on-base master, Carpenter added power to his list of skills. He gave away some of his contact skills to facilitate the improvement, but he's still above average at making contact.